Orang Pendek Project – 12/3/2013

The first footprint documented by the OPP was not cast, but was well recorded in photographs. The event happened near Pauh Tinggi Village near Lake Kerinci.

Not much is known about the circumstances around this encounter, as the emails I received indicate several dates. However, as near as I can figure, the sighting occured on November 29, 2012. John, my Sumatran tracker contact, arrived at the scene on December 3 and took numerous photographs of the witness and what he found when he followed the prints into the jungle.

John and the witness found that the orang pendek was eating corn that was stolen from nearby fields. Following the tracks a bit further, they found where the orang pendek had torn apart a rotting log seemingly in search of grubs.

The footprint shows greater depth at both the heel and the ball of the foot. The ball is impressed in front of where the widely divergent hallux (big toe) connects to the foot. This will be very useful for inferring the bone structure underlying the foot as more data comes in.

When scrolling through the photographs below, be sure to read the captions. They hold more information.